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A Shelved Project Gets a Second Life as a One-Sitting Halloween Scare
DarkStone Digital, the studio behind The Mortuary Assistant, has teamed with publisher DreadXP to release a brand-new psychological horror experience on PC at no cost, according to Gematsu’s reporting. The game went live on Steam today with no advance warning, just in time for Halloween.
The setup is presented as leaked material: a whistleblower’s archive of footage and documents tied to a New England couple who uncover a strange object while renovating their home. The official description warns that the symbols inside have never been risk-assessed, that nobody has been willing to go through the files personally, and that anyone who starts noticing unexplainable things after viewing them should report it to their local field office.
A single run lasts roughly 30 to 60 minutes, and there is no way to save, so players need to finish it in one go. DarkStone owner Brian Clarke explained that the content was originally a demo for a larger game that will now never be finished, and that putting it out for free is his way of honoring the work rather than leaving it “sitting on the shelf like some cursed item” while he moves on to new projects.
Developer: DarkStone Digital
Publisher: DreadXP
Platform: PC (Steam)
Price: Free
Release Date: Available now (October 26, 2026)
Source: Reporting and confirmation via Gematsu.